Ethereum is the future. It is the path towards freedom. Ethereum paves the way towards a decentralized society and finance, bringing out the true value of transparency, traceability, and security in various fields of profession, not limited just to cryptography and finance. It is one of the most unique and innovative solutions that was scientifically and mathematically developed and is continuously being enhanced by diverse groups of intellectual and passionate individuals such as developers, researchers, institutions, and users to bridge the gap between the centralized and decentralized world – off-chain and on-chain respectively. In my perspective, Ethereum is the future that lays a helping hand for me to experience freedom in various ways, not just in financial aspects but also in other fields that are not even aligned with my current profession.
Ethereum is my stepping stone into the blockchain and decentralized world. I vividly remember my first transactions in my web wallet (MetaMask and MyEtherWallet) on the Ethereum network using Ethereum as a transaction fee in 2017. These transactions forever changed my life, indulging me in the blockchain and its decentralized world. It is a gift that keeps on giving and continues to thrive through time. Ethereum served as my onboarding pass towards the magical world of its rich ecosystem that is rapidly changing through the course of time. No one can deny the fact that in the blink of an eye, a lot of events can happen on-chain - a single transaction carries a lot of data and processes invisible to the eyes of a normal user.
Ethereum is the 2nd largest cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalization and is being institutionalized. It has deep liquidity and its own blockchain, which is a public ledger that can be viewed by anyone in any part of the world at any time without restrictions or limitations. Every transaction initiated within the Ethereum network will be embedded in its blockchain forever – tamper-proof and viewable through the course of time.
In the beginning, I was very skeptical about all the things that were happening. I asked myself, "Why is an intangible and magical asset like Ethereum so valuable and convertible to real-world money, and how can it change the world?" This question ignited my curiosity about Ethereum, other cryptocurrencies, and the technological aspects of these intangible yet powerful assets in this space. As soon as I discovered the Ethereum ecosystem, I knew that Ethereum was the future – not just the coin itself, but Ethereum as a blockchain network. It made me realize that technological advancements are rapid and evident through the different projects and protocols being built on top of Ethereum.
These protocols and projects have different visions and missions aligned with Ethereum's principles, aiming to onboard users and even institutions on-chain where anyone can have personal and financial freedom without sacrificing time, money, security, and even privacy. It is the home of the most innovative and largest Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and Decentralized Applications (DApps) and protocols such as Aave, Uniswap, Reflexer, and others that are battle-tested through time and continuously providing services to on-chain users.
All the biggest projects with technical breakthroughs are mostly launched on the Ethereum network or are being built on top of Ethereum. Why? Because Ethereum is built to last a lifetime, a blockchain network that is self-sustaining, secure, and being developed by the collective minds of experienced individuals in the field of cryptography and other related fields. The Ethereum network serves as the layer 1 that lays a foundation for the creation of different layer 2 solutions such as Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, Taiko, Polygon, and Starknet. These layer 2 solutions are being built on top of Ethereum to inherit its features such as security and cater to a larger user base through scalability, low cost, and faster onboarding.
Ethereum is the learning and foundational ground with strong footings for different ideas that bring innovative and fresh concepts in terms of learning, earning, and real-world application such as MEV, arbitrage, market making, staking, and others. It is the path towards the application of Mathematics in tandem with innovative ideas.
Ethereum has allowed me to experience borderless transactions and communications without intermediaries, processed using the prowess of Mathematics. Through Ethereum, I received various airdrops such as the Uniswap airdrop, which I used to explore other protocols and projects in Ethereum. This helped me understand how decentralized market makers work efficiently and the ideas behind them. I even participated in various grants using Ethereum and somehow gave back to the ecosystem by funding various projects and charities without limitations or restrictions regarding my identity.
I received my first Non-Fungible Token (NFT) on the Ethereum Network, which helped me understand how the decentralized market works with the use of NFTs through OpenSea and other marketplaces. Ethereum opened my mind to the world of decentralized lending and borrowing, specifically through Maker and Aave, which helped me understand the real-world applications of lending and borrowing. This knowledge later helped me in my current field of profession.
Ethereum allowed me to trade different markets such as foreign exchange, stocks, and even commodities through various decentralized exchanges. It opened the path for me to learn about other blockchains and cryptocurrencies, how each of them works, and their technological prowess and different mechanisms such as Proof-of-Stake (PoS), which is the current state of Ethereum, and Proof-of-Work (PoW), the former mechanism of Ethereum similar to Bitcoin.
Everything that happened in my cryptocurrency and blockchain journey boils down to Ethereum. I would not be in my current position without it. I consider myself lucky to be part of a small percentage of people in the world who know about Ethereum. Without it, I would not be here writing about my perspective on it; I would not have experienced financial freedom; and I would not continue to learn about these great technological advancements that are being enhanced and used in real-world applications.
Ethereum is powerful and limitless; almost anything can be built on top of it or in conjunction with it by bringing together great and capable minds. Ethereum is not just a path for monetary goals, but also for bringing freedom to each user by providing solutions to fragmented concepts and ideologies from off-chain to on-chain.
I want to share how awesome Ethereum is – its concept and usage do not stop at DeFi, DApps, NFTs, L2s, and others. It can also be applied beyond these scopes. As a believer in the underlying technological capabilities and innovation of the Ethereum blockchain, I integrated it into my various researches and even as part of my final dissertation during my studies. This aimed to solve fragmented dilemmas in the field of construction management, which was used in creating a framework for decentralized construction information management systems that are verifiable and traceable on-chain. This work provided me with the opportunity to present in various countries and is currently being developed for integration into various local projects, with hopes of being integrated into larger scale and complex projects inside and outside of the country.
Ethereum has brought me many experiences and valuable learnings that I have applied not just in this space but also in real-life situations. For the most significant part of my writing, I want to give my greatest tips and guides for navigating this ever-changing world of Ethereum and blockchain landscapes:
- Always put security as your top priority. As I navigated my Ethereum journey, I initially neglected this aspect, but after experiencing the horror of almost being drained, phished, hacked, or scammed through simple wallet signature clicks and approvals, I learned the hard way.
- Trust only yourself. Do not expose yourself as a crypto investor or user to people you do not know, which in return can make your life more secure and convenient.
- Have a separate device for your on-chain transactions – keep your personal or work devices separate from the device you use for blockchain interactions.
- Have a burner or warm wallet for interacting with different protocols or projects, and create a separate cold wallet combined with a hardware wallet such as Ledger or Trezor.
- Always read what you sign, approve, and confirm while interacting on-chain. Use various credible browser extensions and innovative solutions such as WalletGuard, Harpie, RevokeCash, and others.
- Never stop expanding your knowledge in securing your valuable assets such as Ethereum and other intangible assets. Learn about different types of signatures you will encounter as you dig deeper into the Ethereum and other ecosystems – such as gasless signatures including personal_sign and eth_sign, which can be used in creating malicious transactions.
- Always triple-check links before clicking and avoid the fear of missing out (FOMO). Use the DeFiLlama Extension for added security.
- Use multi-signature wallets if possible.
- If you are unsure, always ask questions to individuals deeply tied to the projects or protocols.
- If something seems too good to be true, then it is 99.99% likely not true.
Long live, Ethereum - The Future and the provider of freedom.